


Darkness soothes; Light heals

by Coi86



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-08
Updated: 2015-12-22
Packaged: 2018-04-19 17:44:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,656
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4755356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Coi86/pseuds/Coi86
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hogwarts has been rebuilt and students have returned but most if not all are not as they were before the final battle. Hermione is trying to sort out her life and self again. So is Draco. Slowly they drift together and begin to unknowingly rebuild their lives together. (Another Dramione, I know. Obviously I'm ignoring the epilogue of the book series.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Darkness soothes

**Author's Note:**

> This is my second Dramione, my other one is over at FanFic.com but I'll be moving it here soon. I've only just begun it so I don't have a complete idea of where it's going but it may get dark so count that as your general warning for now. If particular chapters are nasty I'll post a note at the beginning to give a heads up. I hope you enjoy it. I love writing these two. =D   
> (I posted this in a bit of a hurry so apologies for anything that doesn't make sense or spelling mistakes; I do so hate spelling mistakes)

Hermione walked towards the Forbidden Forest. She knew she shouldn’t go there but since the war had ended she felt she needed alone time. Complete Alone Time.   
She didn’t walk far until she came to the spot she wanted to be in. She was standing across the lake from where Sirius and Harry had been attacked by the Dementors in third year. It wasn’t exactly a happy memory but it reminded her of times that seemed simpler. The corners of her mouth quirked up briefly in the attempt at a smile but it wasn’t quite accomplished. It wasn’t surprising; there hadn’t been anything to smile about for quite some time. Yes, the war was over but it seemed a lot of people still carried a battle within themselves. So many lives and possessions had been lost but so much pain remained for those who had managed to live it was hard to remember who had been luckier in the end.   
The Ministry touted the usual lines of ‘Live your lives in honour of the fallen!’ and ‘Rebuild, remarry and prosper!’.  
Hermione knew the Ministry was desperate to remake their world and fill it with witches and wizards once more but she thought the mention of marriage was a bit insensitive. The fact that a marriage law hadn’t been imposed yet was interesting. Perhaps the Ministry was going for subtle for a change though Hermione was sure it was on the cards if the population didn’t increase significantly in the next couple of years.  
The night was quiet around her. Even the bats seemed to have silenced their usual chatter. In an odd way the still darkness made her feel safe and helped calm her frayed nerves until she felt she could breathe again, both physically and mentally. The confines of the great castle of Hogwarts felt almost unbearable at times which was why she escaped into the night occasionally.   
Hogwarts had been rebuilt and nothing much seemed changed about the structure except maybe a new painting hung in the place of one destroyed in the battle or new statues and benches were scattered around the grounds. The students were the same for the most part. The excitement of entering hogwarts for the first time distracted the first years from any losses they had experienced. For the rest of them, especially the eighth years, it had been hard to return to normal life. Or at least what was considered ‘normal’ for a witch or wizard.  
Hermione sighed and sank down to sit against one of the many trees of the forest. Her thoughts drifted to Buckbeak. Where was he now? Harry had officially given him his freedom after the war. As far as she knew he had continued to live with Hagrid but since she had returned to Hogwarts she hadn’t seen him. She had expected to see him during her nocturnal visits to the forest but had instead been met with another.  
“Out of bed so late Granger?”  
Hermione almost smiled as Draco sat down nearby, legs neatly crossed in front of him. He always sat to the side and just in front of her so she couldn’t get a clear view of his face. She supposed that was a good thing; he couldn’t see hers either.  
O about her third visit to the forest she had been joined by none other than Draco Malfoy. He had sat down silently quite a way from her and her first instinct had been to tell him to shove off and move to another spot. But she hadn’t and now it had become a sort of ritual. He seemed to always know when she was out here, unless of course he came out every night but he always turned up after she had been outside for a little while like he kept watch to see if she was going to go out. She shook her head slightly at that thought.  
Slowly, very slowly, he had sat closer to her and they had begun a dialogue of sorts. It usually didn’t amount to more than a couple of words each but it seemed to help settle her enough to find the strength to return to her bed.  
“Oh you know me Malfoy; always breaking the rules.”  
A barely audible snort drifted over to her and she really did smile this time. It was odd. Her brief exchanges with Malfoy managed to make her smile at least once whereas any interactions during the day with her actual friends failed to elicit the same response. She brushed that thought aside too. She wasn’t ready to analyse the time spent with her former enemy. And really, they had only shared these night time visits a couple of times so there wasn’t anything to analyse. Or so she thought.

 

The cool nighttime air drifted over Draco’s skin, helping to soothe his over worked mind. He had woken from a nightmare, again. They were always about the same sort of thing. Death, torture, pain. His aunt Bella featured most nights. She was either trying to compel him into hurting someone else by hurting him or worse, she had succeeded into making him do it. And then he would wake up.   
On some of these nights he would wake up and as he was staring at the ceiling above his bed he would feel something beckon him from his rest (if you could call it that). Those were the nights he would wander down to the Forbidden Forest and find Granger casually reclining against a tree. So he would join her. They would sit and bask in the quiet darkness until one, then the other, left to go back to bed. He would never admit it, out loud at least, but her presence helped him feel calm again. His swirling thoughts and shaking body would quiet once he saw her and could smell her feminine scent in the air. Vanilla and cinnamon, just like she’d been baking something.   
He liked the thought of her wearing an apron and bustling around a kitchen. One that looked rather similar to the one at the manor. The image in his head changed slightly when a pair of very male arms wrapped around her from behind. Draco shifted uncomfortably against the tree when he saw this male turned out to be himself.   
Whoa. Where had that come from?  
Of course he’d noticed Granger when they’d all come back for their eighth year. She had changed like they all had and grown up, physically and mentally. What he hadn’t expected was for her to become so lovely to look at. He’d done away with his prejudices a while ago, quite possibly the exact moment his aunt had begun torturing Granger right in front of him. No pure-blood ideals had been worth holding onto if that was the outcome.   
His face grew hot as he resisted turning his head to look at her. She would be sitting there serenely, having no idea what thoughts were chasing themselves around in his head. Just as well, he thought. She’d never consider looking at me twice anyhow.  
He sighed in his head and stood up, brushing dirt from his trousers. Before he could really think about it he covered the ground between them in a couple of strides and held his hand out to her.  
She looked up at him and he could plainly see her hesitation before he felt her warm hand grasp his own. He felt the contact throughout his body; it had been some time since he had been the recipient of skin to skin contact, innocent or not. He was thankful for the lack of light in that moment, otherwise the sudden flush to his skin was sure to be noticed by the ever observant witch. Without thinking he blurted out,”Can you bake Granger?”  
The immediate desire to smack himself on the forehead was so strong he would have if Hermione wasn’t still holding onto his hand. Which she promptly dropped at the sound of his voice. Draco expected her to walk away without answering his idiotic, somewhat random question but when he looked at her she appeared to be considering his words. The faint light from the half moon allowed him to see just enough of her expression to know she wasn’t going to call him an idiot and he found his thoughts wandering to admiration for the way the silver light seemed to make her glow slightly.   
Maybe she has Veela blood in her family line from way back, he thought.   
Apparently tonight was the night for random thoughts.  
“Yes Malfoy, I can bake. I rather enjoy it actually. The whole process of measuring ingredients and making sure to follow the different processes for things makes me……...happy and content I guess. Baking is a very homey type thing to do.”  
She paused before adding,”And it reminds me of my mum and the time we spent together.”  
Her face fell slightly as she said the last part and Draco knew it was because she had been unable to undo the memory charm she had cast on her parents before she went off to hunt Horcruxes with Potter and the Weasel. There had been a sentence or two about it in The Daily Prophet when the paper had done lengthy article about the Golden Trio.  
He didn’t think he would mind at all if he managed to ‘lose’ his parents but he was aware that Hermione’s upbringing and relationship with her parents was so vastly different to his family relations that it might as well have happened on another planet.  
The silence drew out and began to get awkward, prompting Draco to continue his downward spiral into foot in mouth syndrome; at least for a Malfoy. It was a major faux pas to appear as anything but eloquent and sophisticated -but never friendly- in public. His father would have subtly reprimanded him by now.  
“Well, any time you want to bake I’ll be there. I can cook a little myself; maybe you could teach me a thing or two sometime.”  
That earned a small smile from her.  
“I might just do that Malfoy.”  
She began to walk back up to the castle and Draco trailed after her, musing over her words. He couldn’t help it but a small flame seemed to flicker to life inside him, making him feel warm and almost happy.  
In no time at all they made it to the bottom of the stairs that would take Hermione up to her room in a private part of the Gryffindor tower. Draco would be making his way up another staircase to his room in a newly built tower that roughly sat above the dungeons that accommodated the Slytherin dormitories and common room.  
As so few had returned to complete their seventh year of study it had been deemed necessary to provide private rooms for the ‘eighth’ years. For some it was because they needed the option of total solitude in order to cope with damages from the war. For others it was a sign of respect and thanks for the part they played before, during and after the final battle.   
So private rooms had been created in the Ravenclaw and Gryffindor towers and two entirely new towers had been constructed for the Slytherins and Hufflepuffs. They could still access their old common rooms but they also had the use of an eighth year common room which was located on the formerly forbidden third floor.  
Draco’s gaze travelled up the staircase that Hermione would take, forcing them to go in different directions, and he sighed. He was reluctant to go back to bed on his own; he was sure the nightmare would pick up from where it left off. His focus was brought back to Hermione when she moved to tuck a stray curl behind her ear. Her eyes held an emotion he couldn’t quite understand but the expression on her face made him think her thoughts were similar to his own.  
“I’ll say goodnight then Malfoy. Sleep well.”  
Without waiting for a reply she ascended the stairs and quickly disappeared from his view. He continued to stand there as if he was stuck to the stone floor for a few moment before his feet began to move automatically, taking him back to his room and bed.  
Draco flopped down on the mattress and closed his eyes. His mind was pleasantly blank except for the image of Hermione as she had stared at him before bidding him goodnight. He still couldn’t work out why she had looked at him like that but he didn’t care.   
That small flame flickered on inside him and he was lulled to sleep by the feeling of being almost-happy.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now before anyone accuses me of 'bashing' I assure you that's not my intention. And also, while I haven't actually had someone I know to commit suicide I do know a couple of people who have been in a very dark place, myself included (my marriage and job weren't going so well). So please don't judge that portion of the chapter or Hermione's reaction. I believe everyone reacts differently in upsetting situations and not always as we all would deem appropriate or acceptable.

Hermione’s eyes popped open shortly after dawn. Normally the echoes of her nightmares would still be present in her mind, leaving her unsettled and groggy. This morning however she felt rested and her thoughts began with her wondering what she would have for breakfast. It was the first time since coming back to school that she found herself looking forward to joining the rest of the students for breakfast in the Great Hall.   
Maybe I’m finally finding my feet in this mess.  
The thought lingered as she got dressed and made her way downstairs. Before she got to the enormous doors and a safe seat next to Ginny another thought followed.  
I wonder if Draco is in there too? Imagine the fuss if I sat next to him.  
A humorless chuckle escaped her and she shook her head.

It frustrated her that the some of the students still hung onto the prejudices from before the war. Whether it was about blood purity or about who had had connections to death eaters it didn’t matter any more. If the wizarding world was going to move forward everyone had to move past the old ideals and work together to create a safe and peaceful world again.  
When she entered the hall her frustration faded slightly as she saw that students were mingling. She could see Neville at the Hufflepuff table enjoying toast with students from that house plus Luna with her usual dreamy expression. She noted a couple of Gryffindor’s were at the Ravenclaw table though she doubted their intentions were as pure as Neville’s were.

The table that looked least changed was the Slytherin table.  
No surprises there.  
Admittedly she could see a couple of flashes of blue and even red here and there so it wasn’t really as bad as all that. It was progress at least.  
Hermione slid onto the bench beside Ginny and began assembling her breakfast; toast with butter and strawberry jam and a cup of tea.  
It took her a moment to realise how quiet her friend was being. She glanced at Ginny and saw that instead of the hearty appetite she usually exhibited she was toying with the corner of a half eaten piece of dry toast. She thought it might just be that the redhead was missing Harry but it seemed odd enough to warrant a question.

“Are you okay Ginny? You seem a bit subdued this morning…..”  
Her friend turned to her reluctantly and seemed to be holding back tears. Hermione’s mind automatically jumped to the worst possible thing.  
“Well, yeah. I….ah.”  
She took a deep breath and spoke in a quiet voice.  
“Rons in the hospital wing. Seamus found him this morning; you know they come down to breakfast together. He managed to get Ron to Madame Pomfrey just in time.”  
Hermione’s face lost all colour as she thought over the implications of her friends words.   
“Are you saying he…….tried to take his own life?”  
Ginny nodded tearfully.

The brunette was lost for words. A small part of her brain was cursing at the emotional situation she was in right now. She had never been very good at offering the right sort of comfort to someone and her overly analytical brain often provided her with the most inappropriate things to say. Once a childhood friend's pet dog had died and her first thought was Well you can always get another one you know.  
Managing to bite back any unhelpful words, Hermione awkwardly patted her friend's arm as she watched her try and hold back the tears.   
“Have you been to visit him yet? I’m sure you could go now and get a note for missing classes from Madame Pomphrey. Maybe even take the whole day.”  
Ginny shook her head.  
“No, I don’t want him to see me like this. I’m sure he’s asleep anyway. I’ll go after lunch.”

She hunched over and focused on her toast. Hermione took that as the close to the conversation and turned her attention to her own food.  
It wasn’t long before she was finished and decided to make her way to class. Ginny had quietly left shortly after their conversation had ended.  
However it seemed her feet had a mind of their own. As she walked the corridors lost in her own thoughts she found her destination wasn’t ancient runes after all. Hermione found herself outside the door that led into the hospital wing. It hadn’t been her intention to visit Ron. To tell the truth she felt awkward around him without Harry there too. And the fact that their romance had been nothing more than a brief firework show didn’t help. The passionate kiss during that final battle hadn’t really led to anything more except a disastrous date where he was thirty minutes late, was wearing crumpled clothes and mismatched socks and had only brought wizarding money when he knew they’d be going to a muggle restaurant. 

Looking back on it she could laugh. It had been a comedy of errors really and that was when she realised Ron wasn’t the man for her.  
Before she lost her nerve she entered the large room. There didn’t seem to be anyone but Ron in residence but she couldn’t actually see him. He was hidden by opaque partitions further down the room. 

Tentative steps brought her up to the point where one more would bring him into view. Her hesitation prompted a voice to growl, “I know you’re there Hermione. I can smell your perfume.”  
Her shoulders drooped. I knew this was a bad idea!  
She stepped around and stood at the bottom of the bed.   
For lack of something to say she blurted,” Ginny told me you were here. And…...kind of what happened.”  
Ron looked up at her through slightly bloodshot eyes. The dark smudges underneath spoke volumes and the bandaged wrists on top of the bed sheet confirmed what Ginny had told her.  
Before she could say anything else he spoke.  
“I don’t want your damn pity. At least Ginny has the sense to not visit before she’s pulled herself together. I feel bad enough without having to take on your emotions too.”

An image came to Hermione's mind from just the day before in transfiguration class.  
Ron had sat next to Lavender and he’d actually smiled and even laughed a little. She had been surprised. It was the first time since Fred’s death that she had seen him enjoy himself even the slightest. She had thought a frown would forever be frozen on his face. It had given her hope that he had begun to heal and in doing so maybe he would help Lavender to heal too. 

“But I thought you were happier Ron. You seemed to be yesterday in class with Lavender. You both looked so happy together.”  
He seemed to snap at her words and sat up straighter in the bed. She was sure that if he had the strength he would have jumped off of the mattress to physically confront her. His voice got lower and a sneer worthy of Malfoy marked his mouth.  
“Oh yes. Wouldn’t that be just nice and neat for you. Then you wouldn’t have to feel so guilty about fucking a death eater!”  
Hermione gasped, her mouth hanging open. He pointed his finger at her accusingly.  
“I saw you Hermione! Last night. I couldn’t sleep so I was sitting by the window when I saw you walk into the Forbidden Forest. I thought that was odd but when I saw the Ferret follow not five minutes later I knew what was going on.”  
His face was red with anger and malice. Hermione was too shocked to defend herself with the truth. She wasn’t even sure she could. What would she even call Malfoy? Friend? Acquaintance? Nearly-friend?

“I was so angry that you of all people would betray me like that. And with him. Someone worse than scum. So I waited. And I wasn’t disappointed. You both walked back and I just knew.”  
“Ron. Stop. Please.”  
He shook his head violently.  
“HOW COULD YOU DO THIS! HE KILLED FRED!”  
He stopped yelling and looked to be struggling for control. He found it and continued in a tone dripping with hatred. He held his wrists up.  
“You drove me to this. You were meant to be the one good thing to be mine after the war. But it didn’t happen. And I could accept that you didn’t feel that way about me any more, that friends was the only way to keep you in my life. But now I can see it was all a ruse. You were probably already sleeping with him then. Now you’re dirty and no one will want you after everyone knows what I saw.”  
Hermione stared at him as he settled back down onto the mattress. Her thoughts were a mess but she knew she had to say something, anything to defend herself. Her voice came out at barely a whisper.

“Ron, you don’t understand. Malfoy and I…….we aren’t together. Not in that way. Some…..sometimes we got out to the forest to just sit but that’s all. We barely speak to one another. I don’t even know if I can call him a friend really but-”  
“Just go away Hermione. You’re wasting your time.”  
He closed his eyes against her and she had no choice but to go.

She ran into Madame Pomphrey in the hall just outside the doors before she could school her expression into anything that would pass for normal. The kindly witch motioned for her to wait a moment before she went into her office. She came back with a piece of parchment excusing Hermione from class for the day.  
“I’ll make sure the headmistress receives this so she can notify the other staff members.”  
Her small smile prompted a nod from Hermione before she began to head back to her room. But when she stood outside her door she realised the last thing she needed right now was to be alone. All the things Ron had said were a huge shock. The common room for the eighth years seemed to be the smartest place to go. Most of the students would be in class but there would be one or two that had a free period, just enough to give her some company while also allowing space.

After entering the common room, Hermione nodded to the Patil twins and headed over to a window seat. Once she was settled with a book on her knee she sighed. Her mind had calmed a little and now she began to feel the emotions that had hidden under the numbness that Ron’s onslaught of words had invoked. A spark of anger was trying to override the sorrow she felt about the whole situation but Hermione was determined to not let it take over. She had to remember that Ron was obviously not coping well and that he might say things that he wouldn’t normally say. Usually he would say things without speaking but there was some semblance of a filter at times that would stop him from saying anything truly awful. Now it looked like that filter was gone altogether and his emotions were running riot.

“What’s this? Hermione Granger sitting idle? It can’t be so.”  
Hermione would have jumped out her skin she was so startled by the sudden voice near her ear.  
“Shit!.”  
All heads turned their way as Draco shifted into view to sit facing her on the cushioned bench seat. She watched as he settled his back against the wall and noted how his shoulder moved a little, trying to find a comfortable spot against the stone.  
She scowled at him.  
“If you sneak up on me like that again I’ll hex you till your beloved hair falls out.”  
He laughed aloud at that. Hermione glanced around the room and found everyone was still watching them closely; the Patil twins whispering behind their hands. She focused on the blonde.  
“You do know that everyone will know about us having a chat in the common room by lunch time. Won’t that isolate you even more from your fellow Slytherins?”  
It was rather a silly thing to say. Hermione knew that only a handful of Slytherin’s had returned to become eighth years. Quite a few of them had either moved out of the country or gone straight to work. The Ministry had charged many of the old pureblood families a fine of sorts. It was weighted on what their involvement with Voldemort had been but for some it had been enough to almost send them to the poor house.

Hermione had only seen Blaise and Pansy so far. 

It wasn’t surprising that Pansy appeared to be keeping to herself mostly. If there was one student, besides Malfoy, that wasn’t going to assimilate and attempt to befriend other houses it would be her. Her behaviour during the final battle had further soured the other students’ opinion of her.   
Blaise seemed like his old self; disdainful and self-assured. He avoided most of the other students but then again, he always had.   
“How much more isolated can I get? So far I’ve spoken to Pansy, Blaise and a fourth year who thought it would do him good to sit in my spot at breakfast this morning.”  
After a pause he said,” And you of course. I’ve probably spent more time talking with you than anyone. Fancy that.”  
They spent the next moments in silence until Draco asked,”Wait, aren’t you meant to be in class? Knowing you, you’re taking all classes except divination.”

Hermione grimaced at the mention of her least favourite subject.

“I’m not taking muggle studies either. I was counselled to give it up as my timetable was deemed too full. And since I don’t have a time-turner this year I won’t be taking as many classes as I’d like.”  
Draco cocked an eyebrow at the word ‘time-turner’ but let it pass. No wonder she was so volatile in third year.   
“That doesn’t answer my question though. Why aren’t you in class?”  
Hermione sighed and squirmed a little in her seat. Her gaze drifted to the window as she explained.  
“Rons in the hospital wing. He tried to kill himself early this morning. And he blames me for it.”  
Draco was speechless. He waited, knowing there was more to it than that.  
“It’s selfish of me to think this but it feels so unfair. He’s having a hard time recovering after the war, I know that but so is everyone else. He could have asked anyone around him for help but he chose to build it all up inside until he finally exploded.”  
“But why does he blame you?” Draco reached out to put his hand on her leg in comfort. It was odd, that he felt comfortable enough to do so but Hermione thought it was more of an unconscious gesture than anything else and chose not to read anything into it.  
Hermione took a deep breath and repeated what Ron had told her.

Draco snatched his hand back and looked like he was going to jump up from his seat to go and do goodness knew what but in the last second he composed himself enough to settle for sitting rigidly against the wall.   
Hermione watched anger and disappointment pass over his face until the Malfoy mask settled in place again. She had expected the anger but the disappointment puzzled her. She herself had felt disappointment when she realised once she told Draco about Ron and what he thought she would most likely lose the tenuous companionship they had begun to share. There was no one else at Hogwarts that she felt she could just be around. Everyone else expected something from her and it was exhausting. It was a perk of making a friend of a past enemy. They had a clean slate with one another and it was refreshing. 

“I’ll understand if I don’t see you any more. Once everyone hears one version or another it’ll be just like the old days of being gossiped about and being ignored at the same time.”  
Hermione focused on her hands, not wanting him to see the unhappiness that was etched across her face.  
Draco watched her for a moment before clearing his throat.  
“Granger, don’t be silly. Why would a rumour or two stop me from doing what I want? It’ll take much more than that to deter me. In fact, it might even make it all the more enjoyable. Don’t you want to see what nonsense they come up with?”  
Hermione looked up to find Draco looking at her with a half smile on lips. It coaxed a similar expression from her.

“Has hell frozen over?”  
The pair looked up to see Blaise standing over them with his arms crossed over his chest.  
Hermione thought it might be the first time she had ever been addressed by him.   
For a moment it had felt like Draco and her were the only two people in the room but with Blaise’s interruption it occurred to her that the common room had filled up a bit more since she had first come in.  
“What do you want Zabini? Lost your nail file again?”  
It was said in good humour, even though a sneer accompanied the words. Blaise seemed unruffled as he returned,”I would never lose such a thing Malfoy. I, unlike you, recognise the need for proper grooming.”  
He turned around to pull up a nearby chair.  
“I simply wondered at the two of you sitting here so nicely. And not a scratch or bruise to be seen.”  
He grinned at that and Hermione was amazed by the whiteness of his perfectly straight teeth. Her parents would approve.

The dentist’s daughter strikes again, she thought.

When no answer was forthcoming he turned to Hermione.  
“You know, your hair looks rather nice today. Have you been using a new potion?”  
She eyed him with distrust as she replied,”No, it seems my hair has gone through a slight change recently and isn’t quite so bushy any more.”  
She touched the long ringlets and said,”Thank you Blaise. For the compliment.”  
There wasn’t much more she could say. It still felt disconcerting to be talked to, let alone complemented, by the conceited Slytherin. Everyone knew his mother’s history and her aspiration for him to marry well. Which meant marry rich.

Hermione wasn’t stupid enough to think he might be interested in her but his attention to her right now was just strange.  
“Are you done Zabini? You walked into a private conversation and now you can walk on out of it.”  
Blaise’s gaze remained on Hermione for a second more before it drifted over to Draco. His eyes narrows slightly, as if he was trying to puzzle something out about his fellow Slytherin but before she could really think about it he suddenly stood from the chair in one smooth quick movement.  
“Suit yourself Malfoy. I was only trying to be friendly.”  
He nodded to Hermione.  
“I reckon I’ll see the both of you around.”  
They watched him walk through the common room and out the door before turning to one another again. A couple other students followed, making Hermione realise what the time must be.  
“It must be about time for you to go to class.”  
Draco shrugged noncommittally.  
“Go. I’ll most likely be here when you get back.”

He looked like he was going to argue but then decided against it. It wasn’t worth the effort and he’d lose anyway. Plus getting detention for missing class wasn’t really all that appealing as it would take away the small amount of free time he already had.  
Draco got up to go but paused, looking down at the witch. He ran a hand over his face.

“I can’t believe I’m about to say this,” he said, looking as if the words were escaping his mouth against his will, “but I know what it’s like to feel as if you’ve hit rock bottom and you’re still falling into the darkness below. It’s tough.”  
He took a breath.  
“Weasley is probably my least favourite person, next to Potter but don’t be too hard on him. You’re over analysing the whole situation; shutting off your emotions about it all. Just feel. Take a deep breath and feel.”  
Hermione’s mouth almost dropped open in disbelief.  
“Did you just defend Ron? I think I just witnessed a miracle. But jokes aside you’re right, I guess. My mind just gets in the way of all the emotional stuff. I’ve got to try and get better at it all for Ginny’s sake right now.”

She smiled at Draco.  
“Thanks for the advice but now off you go. No amount of talking is going to make me forget that you’re meant to be in class just about right now.”  
He smirked at her and left the room, leaving Hermione to gazing out the window with a small frown on her face as she thought things over.


End file.
